This UK electro pop duo featured Neil Arthur (15 June 1958, Lancashire, England; vocals/guitar) and Steven Luscombe (b. 29 October 1954; keyboards). After debuting with an EP, Irene And Mavis, they were invited by disc jockey/entrepreneur Stevo to appear on his influential 1981 Some Bizzare compilation. This led to a contract with London Records and a synthesizer-based albu
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This Liverpool, England-based band was formed in 1979 around the core of Gary Daly (10 May 1962, Kirkby, Merseyside, England; vocals) and Eddie Lundon (b. 9 June 1962, Kirkby, Merseyside, England; guitar). In 1982, their first single, African And White, initially on the independent Inevitable label, was picked up for distribution by Virgin Records and made a crit
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Purveyors of perfect pop in the early 80s, ABCs sound has always been dominated by the stunning vocal range and lyrical songwriting skills of lead singer Martin Fry (9 March 1958, Manchester, England). The band was formed after Fry had interviewed Mark White (b. 1 April 1961, Sheffield, Yorkshire, England; guitar) and Stephen Singleton (b. 17 April 1959, Sh
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John Howard Jones, 23 February 1955, Southampton, Hampshire, England. Coming to prominence as a synthesizer-pop maestro in the mid-80s, Jones had been trying to succeed as a musician for almost 15 years. His childhood saw him on the move from country to country but by the time he reached his teens he was settled in High Wycombe, England. He joined his first band in 1976 and
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Formed in Beckenham, Kent, England in 1980, Haircut 100 began on a part-time basis with a line-up comprising Nick Heyward (20 May 1961, Beckenham, Kent, England; vocals), Les Nemes (b. 5 December 1960, Croydon, Surrey, England; bass) and Graham Jones (b. 8 July 1961, Bridlington, North Yorkshire, England; guitar). Early the following year they were augmented by Memphis Blair
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Thomas Morgan Robertson, 14 October 1958, Cairo, Egypt. Dolby is a self-taught musician/vocalist/songwriter and computer programmer. After studying meteorology and projectionism at college, he started building his own synthesizers at the age of 18. With his own hand-built PA system he acted as sound engineer on tours by the Members, Fall and the Passions. Afterwards, he co-f
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The initial premise of Ultravox came from the 70s school of electro rock represented by pioneers Kraftwerk and the glam rock of Brian Eno and Roxy Music. Formed in 1974, initially as Tiger Lily, the early line-up comprised Royal College Of Art student John Foxx (Dennis Leigh, Chorley, Lancashire, England; vocals), Steve Shears (guitar), Warren Cann (b. 20 May 1952, Victoria,
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Dennis Leigh, Chorley, Lancashire, England. Foxx moved to London in 1974 where he became a key instigator in the rise of the UK electro pop scene. He was a founder member of Ultravox, with whom he wrote, sang and dabbled in synthetic noises. Gary Numan cited Foxx as his main influence, which was some consolation for the fact that Numan was having hits when Ultravox were dro
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